The champagne bubbles must have gone to my head with all the bubbly DIYs (champagne guide + DIY photo booth) lately but I couldn’t help it: I had to keep the champagne flowin’!! I mean, if there was ever a season to pop fizz clink, it’s the Christmas season. And it involves donuts…so this was practically mandatory! I really had no choice, guys. Champagne Bubble Donut Bites HAD TO HAPPEN!

For a split second though, I thought the donut bites weren’t going to happen. I resurrected my champagne flute cookie cutter, which I used last year to create New Year’s Eve Cookies, with the intention of making a NYE baked good that was BIGGER + BETTER! Everything was going swimmingly. Dough was perfect, the oil was heated + the sugar glaze was set. What could do wrong? Well, my champagne flute shapes didn’t really hold up in the oil. Each time I tried to turn the champagne flute would-be donut over, it lost its shape. And I nearly lost my motivation. I started drafting an apology post to you all. I really had my champagne popping heart set on creating a NYE donut. And then inspiration hit me: Champagne Bubble Donut Bites! Break out the bubbly because we’re in it to win it!

Nothing always goes to according to plan but in this case, we definitely made lemonade out of lemons by making donut bites out of donuts!

These little donut bites are an easy addition for your New Year’s Day brunch, sitting pretty right next to a bottle (or several) o’ bubbly! The dough can be prepared the day before and after that it just takes a few minutes to fry ‘em up. Don’t have a deep fryer? Neither do I! A big pot with about an inch of canola oil gets the job done. Dip the bites in a little glaze and sprinkle with “pearls” (because obviously) and you’re in business! And you want to know what the best part is?!?! You can easily pop one or two or five into your mouth without putting down your champagne flute.

Donut Bites Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 stick of butter, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

4 cups flour

Directions

1. In a large bowl, add the sugar and butter. Using a mixer, blend until combined. Add the salt, baking powder, nutmeg, vanilla extract, eggs and milk until mixed together.

2. Add the cups of flour one-by-one and mix until the dough forms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it chill in the fridge for about 2 hours. It’s tough being donut dough, man.

3. Take the dough out of the fridge and pinch off enough dough to create a ball about 1 1/2 inch thick. Eyeball it! As long as the donut bites are about the same size, you’re all set.

4. Heat up an inch of canola oil in a large pot. Test to make sure the oil is ready to rock ‘n roll by pinching off a bit of dough and dropping it in the oil. If bubbles immediately start going crazy around the dough, it’s donut time.

5. Let each donut bite hang out in the oil about 2-3 minutes, turn each bite over a couple of times. Once it gets golden brown, take it out of the oil.

6. Place the donut bites on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil + let cool before you glaze them.

Donut Glaze Recipe

Ingredients

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1 drop ivory food coloring

Directions

1. Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar and milk in a small bowl. Add the drop of ivory coloring and continue whisking until well blended.

Growing up, I was taught the importance of sending a thank you card. My parents made me send them at birthdays and Christmas and any other appropriate time. Obviously when you are younger you are going to hate writing them, but now that I am older I realize how important it is to say thank you. Now I practically look for an excuse just to send or give a cute card to someone, so today I wanted to share some of my favorite places to buy thank you cards in particular or websites that I haven't actually ordered from (yet) but they have cute cards.

In the mist of the holiday crazy, I hope you can take a minute to stop, take a deep breathe and see the love behind it all. I don't know about you, but I wear my heart on my sleeve which is why I love this tee so much. Thanks for reading, wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Growing up, one of my favorite things about Christmas at home was the mass amounts of Christmas candies and desserts that my mother would make. We have this long hutch in our dining room that my mother would fill to the brim with tins. In each tin would be a different candy or cookie, all homemade (never store bought). Everything from molasses cookies, to fudge, to peanut butter balls and my father's favorite, turtles. These delicious sweets are very similar to Goo Goo Clusters, but are a much simpler version. I served these and some other treats at my Blogger's Favorite Things party I hosted this past Sunday -- more to come on that tomorrow!

Cover your baking sheet with wax paper and grease with either a heavy coat of butter or your preferred cooking spray. Unwrap the caramels and put into a microwave safe melting dish. I personally love this one. Add 2 Tablespoons of your whipping cream. Melt caramel in 30 second increments till it has a soupy like texture. This is where you have to work quickly. Once melted, add your pecans and with a large spoon, mix the two together. Once all of the pecans are coated with caramel, take two spoons to scoop out a heaping tablespoon onto your baking sheet. Work quickly because the caramel hardens fast. Once done, you can either let sit to harden or place in the freezer for 30 minutes. **I also recommend cleaning your microwave dish as quickly as possible. Once the caramel hardens completely, it can be extremely hard to clean.

Next, pour half of the bag of your baking chips into the microwave safe melting dish and melt in 30 second increments. Take the clusters out of the freezer and one by one drop them into the chocolate. With two spoons, fully cover each cluster and drop back onto the greased wax paper.

Repeat process till all of the clusters have been covered in chocolate. Have chocolate left over? Drizzle the remainder over the tops of the candies or double dip them!

Let sit for an hour or two before putting into a tin. This will make anywhere from 12 - 25 clusters, depending on how big you make them.

Sorry for the slight hiatus the past couple of days. I have been soaking up the first few days of having a life again and not studying for exams! Within my family, it is a well known fact that I was a bit peeved with how late I got out this year and how the later date interrupts how soon I can be overwhelmingly jolly for Christmas. With only a few days left before Christmas I have a lot to fit in and check off before the holiday quickly becomes a cleanup task. Since I tend to work best with to do lists I opted to make a bucket list for the remainder of the holiday season and the winter season that has just begun.

Bake Christmas cookies.

And any other sweet treat for that matter. I love baking and used to use it as a stress reliever back in high school. Since I don't exactly have the best kitchen to use at school I use breaks, especially Christmas to catch up on all the baking I've missed throughout the semester. Christmas cookies are some of my favorites to make since I can enjoy both baking and decorating!

Enjoy a snow day (fingers crossed).

Let's hope the weather cooperates with me on this one! I loved having 3 snow days last year and would be thrilled with the same luck this year. Sledding, cozying up inside, snow angels, and drinking hot chocolate are all things I hope to see in my future.

Purchase and wrap presents.

Check and check. I am so excited for all of the gifts I purchased for my family this year and another perk, they are already wrapped!

Go ice skating.

I've already accomplished this one as well and would love to have multiple checks in this box. I love ice skating and think that it is such a fun winter outing to partake in. Get a group of your friends together and make way to the rink!

Watch Christmas movies.

Winter break is just beginning for you to log onto Netflix! I am well on my way to watching all of myChristmas movie favorites and have enjoyed lounging around between blogging and hanging with my family and friends. Find my all time favorites here.

Host a party.

The past few years I have hosted a Christmas cookie party and love the preparations that go into it. While I wasn't able to pull it together before Christmas I am hoping to host some sort of similar post Christmas party!

Curl up by a cozy fire.

Winter is the perfect time to be cozy and I adore the coziness fires provide. Grab a book, a blanket, or your laptop and take a seat next to the crackling flames. I definitely want to be spending some of my break near a fire!

Look at Christmas lights.

Lights epitomize the holiday seasons and I am definitely hoping to drive around and enjoy the lights of the season!

It's that time of year again where holiday parties take up a lot of space in our social calendars. While it's always fun to gather with friends and family, the "what to wear" factor can sometimes be stressful, at least I know it is for me! This past weekend I had my first holiday party of the season and had been attempting to outfit plan for a few days to no avail. When this sequin and velvet top showed up at my doorstep from Piperlime there was no longer a question of what to wear, because this was it! It is absolutely stunning (even more so) in person. I paired it with these AG jeans and a chambray top to give it a more casual feel, but I think it would also look great with leather leggings and a chunky necklace. Let's be honest...the possibilities are endless with it. I definitely felt like I was having a moment of chic in this sequin number, that's for sure!

The Monogrammed Life

Welcome to The Monogrammed Life, a fashion and lifestyle blog owned by Marleylilly - Monogrammed Gifts! Thanks for stopping by! We hope you'll stick around and find some inspiration here. Peace, love, and monograms!